With either of the best screen video recorder for PC helpers, you can make high-quality video footage out of computer screen, webcam or them simultaneously (with audio) easily.
Many (YouTuber) vloggers, online educators and marketers simply produce video materials from PC screen via screencasting. Even the general public tend to apply this method to document something crucial that’s taking place on computer display in high quality because compared to using a mobile, pad or camera for video recording, conducting direct on-screen recording will always make you happy with better outcome – clear picture with no annoying shaking or flickering lines at all.
We have to admit that those above mentioned or not-mentioned-yet requirements give birth to screencasting software, which is more known as screen recorder. Therefore here this “screen video recorder for PC” article will show 15 cherry-picked video capture software for PC in detail. No matter your PC is running either of the mainstream systems – Windows, macOS, Linux and ChromeOS, or you just want a freebie firstly to explore the way, you will get what you want in the following part.
15 Best Screen Video Recorders for PC [New 2022 Version]
Accordingly, a qualified best screen recorder for PC should be feature-rich and support recording all common screen actions, be it the whole monitor performance, app movement, (live) streaming audio/audio media, game session, webcam movie, internal sound and external voice-over from microphone. Therefore, all of the PC video recorders involved below are built with these must-haves in.
Also, the year of 2020 is already over and many online list posts on screen recorder are outdated, some of which even include long-time-no-update or discontinued apps to increase the difficulty for viewer to find the target best tool. So keep on reading this fresh list on best video recorder for PC in 2022, you will be given a series of satisfactory applications or services for the selection.
1. OBS Studio
☛Best Screen Video Recorder for PC Without Cost/Time Limit/Watermark
Platform: Windows 11/10/8.1/8, macOS 10.13+, Linux
Pricing: Free
Download: https://obsproject.com/download
This freeware is an open source screen video recorder that you could find everywhere talking about recording PC screen. In short, the reason that people honors OBS so much derives from its first-tire product identity. As a powerful screen recording and live streaming app, it’s capable of doing broadcasting and screencasting thing respectively or together without hassle.
When acting as a video recorder, OBS gives user no limitation on recording sources, scenes, duration and doesn’t attach watermark onto output video at all. What’s more, by offering a dozen of recording settings, OBS allows the video producer to personalize any video recording parameter like video format, encoder, bit rate, fps, resolution, audio tracks (up to 6), transitions and so forth. Advanced recording settings even include a “Custom Output (FFmpeg)” option for more container format and encoder selections.
Great features indeed, however, what follows it is the relatively more complex UI and workfow, which is not so friendly to beginners who has no experience on this kinda of program or no knowledge on multimedia related tech terms. If you are truly want to have a try on this freebie, you can start with some how-to-setting video guides on YouTube or similar.
Related:
How to Record Video with OBS Studio [Detailed Giude] | [Official] OBS Studio Quick Start
2. Snagit 2022
☛ An Basic and Handy Screen Capture and Recording Software for PC
Platform: Windows, macOS
Pricing: $12.49 Annual fee, $49.99 One-time fee
Download: https://www.techsmith.com/download/snagit/
Snagit is an entry-level screen capture tool from Techsmith for both screenshots and screencasts creation. Although it focus more on screen image capture, it’s still a good bet for video recording and sharing onto a dozen of destinations including YouTube, Dropbox, Google Drive, and FTP.
Snagit has a quite user-oriented interface of its own style. When you use it to do quick process video capture, simply navigate to Video section, decide the area selection, webcam/microphone/system audio/cursor status, and press the big red button to make it happen right away. When it’s over, you can create GIF from video or save PNG files from it.
It seems nothing special on video creation functionality, is that really so? Not really, since it’s so powerful on image capture and editing that it gives another way to make video instruction out of pictures with explanation and many other visual effects. By the way, Snagit’s elder brother Camtasia is an all-in-one video recording and editing app, which you can move up to if you are ready to do things like a pro.
Official Tutorial: How to Record Video with Snagit
3. Loom
☛A Quick and Instant Screen Video Maker for Many Platforms
Platform: Chrome, Mac, Windows, and iOS
Pricing: Free or $8/10 per month billed annually/monthly
Download: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/loom-for-chrome/liecbddmkiiihnedobmlmillhodjkdmb
Loom is a popular Chrome-based screen recording extension aiming to improve the efficiency of online communication between individuals via video message.
Actually, people can work out either video message or other on-screen movements of the whole monitor, an app or a browser tab fast in clicks. After that, the video file will be processed by saved on the cloud space with a private link, which can be accessed immediately for simple edits and instant sharing. Also, the video owner is empowered to control viewing permission in case some crucial information videos are leaked unexpectedly, and every privileged viewer is free to express himself or herself with emoji or comment feedback.
This video recorder add-on requires an account login. With free limited cloud storage, you can keep a dozen of new clips online for further operation. If you worry about key messages being erased due to space running over, do give the video a download to local hard drive. By the way, Loom has redesigned its logo from a red-flower-shaped icon to a blue-sun-shaped one recently. Another starting point maybe!
Another note for Chromebook owner: If you are a Chromebook user, you don’t have to download third-party tool for screen capture because months ago in October 2020, ChromeOS 88 beta has welcomed its native screen recording functionality. By pressing “CTRL+SHIFT+Overview” or the screen capture button in system tray, you can make easy screen video with this internal tool freely.
Official: How to Get Started with Loom
4. Bandicam
☛ The Most Versatile Video Recorder for PC Running Windows
Platform: Windows Vista, 7, 8, 10, 11 (32-bit and 64-bit)
Pricing: $39.95/1-PC license, $59.95/2-PC license
Download: https://www.bandicam.com/downloads/
Bandicam is a marvellous and full-fledged Windows screen recording app that makes any possible types of recordings achievable including common screen recording, game capture, and (HDMI) external device recording.
Bandicam can be a good helper for screencasting thanks to its perfect support on screen content from PC itself and external video devices such as webcam, portable mobile phones/tabs, IPTV/Apple TV/HDTV set-box, and Xbox/PS gaming console. As a mature and quality screen recorder and game recorder, it’s furnished with many ready-made format presets (low-end PC preset included), advanced video settings on format, size, codec, fps (up to 480), quality etc., workable on DirectX/OpenGL/Vulkan games, and allows you do conduct scheduled recording tool, drawing annotation, leverage chrome key effect for webcam image and so on.
For avid gamers and those who want to connect many other devices to PC for recording, Bandicam is superior to other similar programs and is worth a shot.
Official Guide: How to Use Bandicam for Screen/Video/Device Recording
5. Screencast-o-matic
☛ Free Screen Video Recorder Launcher for PC
Platform: Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android, and Chromebook
Pricing: Deluxe $1.65/month (billed yearly) for monthly plan, Premiere $4/month (billed yearly) etc.
Download: Online launcher download required when recording
Screencast-O-Matic is a browser-based free screen recorder that’s able to make up to 15 minutes video without a penny. Besides basic video capture functions such as (full/partial) screen recording and screen & webcam picture in picture video recording, some other features are also offered, for instance zooming while recording, trimming video, adding captions/free background music, saving/uploading video locally or onto YouTube or cloud space, video link sharing.
However, all of those free recorded clips will have a default watermark unless you upgrade it to a Deluxe or Premium account, which removes the watermark and delivers you extra features e.g. drawing and annotating recording, automatically generating captions, applying image or video from stock library.
This is a top-ranked screen recorder that’s enjoyed by users involved in education, business fields as well as daily usage. With it, anyone could document moments and share the idea with ease, virtual lessons, presentations, video messages, gameplay reviews/playthroughs, just to name a few.
Official Tutorials: https://screencast-o-matic.com/tutorials
6. Wondershare DemoCreator
☛ An Easy Screen Video Recorder and Editor for PC
Platform: Windows 11/10/8-7 (64-bit OS), macOS v10.13+
Pricing: $6.99 for monthly plan, $23.99 for annual plan, $47.99 for 1-PC lifetime etc.
Download: https://dc.wondershare.com/
As time goes by and marketing plan changes, Wondershare DemoCreator is now one of the main forces of this tech company, replacing its previous screen recorder utility named Filmora Scrn, who is still a frequent member of many best screen recorders lists of 2020 or earlier. Therefore, I add this new blood into this 2022 fresh list to help more customers know about this handy app.
DemoCreator is an all-in-one screen video capture and editing program that’s especially designed to help people produce pro-looking video tutorials, demos, presentations, gameplay sessions and so on with ease. Before the real capture, you can choose target recording area, decide whether to contain the audio and webcam devices and set for some video parameters. After you’ve finished the recording, the raw footage will be loaded into the internal editor where you are endowed with ability to add caption, annotation, sticker and transition effects, change the file size/playback speed, and export the polished video into MP4, MOV, GIF as you like.
Official Guide: https://dc.wondershare.com/guide-windows/
7. Panopto Express
☛ A True Online Video Recorder for PC Without Download or Install
Platform: Any web with internet connection
Pricing: Free
Download: No need to download
Panopto is a totally free and out-and-out online screen recorder that requires no (installation package or online recorder launcher) download, install, account login, or even credit card binding.
As long as any teacher, trainer, professional, marketer or general public wants to record a video presentation, online course, how-to instruction, and similar with narration and webcam, go ahead to its official page to start the recording immediately with a button pressing. This online service not only features recording an app, a browser tab, a video capture device and the entire screen with voice-over and facecam inset, but also enables you capture video directly from webcam, be it an integrated or an external one. Panopto Express employs Smart Camera here to use AI tech to zoom, pan, and follow your movements within the webcam video frame automatically and smartly.
Instant file share and download are available here if you plan to share through YouTube, Google Classroom, or Panopto directly or save it as MP4 on your PC.
8. Icecream Screen Recorder
☛ An Multi-functional Video Recorder for Windows PC
Platform: Windows Vista/7/8/10/11
Pricing: $29.95/1-PC lifetime license
Download: https://icecreamapps.com/Screen-Recorder/
Icecream Screen Recorder is also an easy-to-handle screen capture application, which is able to capture screen video, record PC game, capture PC audio, as well as take screenshot of any area.
With four core capture modes regarding different features mentioned above embedded, you can navigate to the right one for your upcoming work with no effort. For general screen video capture, you are provided with options for Full screen, Custom area, Auto-detected area, Last/history time (used) area and still a series of around mouse size profiles for fixed resolution & aspect ratio, all of which can have audio and webcam mixed and give you freedom to zoom in/out and do real-time pen drawing. For game capture, you can output high-quality-level MP4/AVI footage at up to 60fps. Audio capture still lists three quality standards with different yet fixed bit rate values.
For any who has requirement on file format, Icecream Screen Recorder on one side has advanced settings on that type of thing, on the other side is equipped with an editor internally for file conversion and resizing thing, e.g downsizing 1080p to 720p.
Official manual: https://icecreamapps.com/Manuals/Screen-Recorder/program-s-features.html
9. RecExperts
☛ A Feature-rich yet Simple PC Screen Recorder
Platform: Windows 7/8/8.1/10/11, macOS 10.10 or higher
Pricing: $19.95/month, $39.95/year, $69.95/lifetime
Download: https://www.easeus.com/screen-recorder/index.html
Although RecExperts is a new screen recorder name, its full set of features give you the freedom to capture every screen activity in your own preferred way.
This desktop screen recorder is quite intuitive to use. Being claimed as the “ultimate screen recorder”, it is integrated with ability to record (entire/specific) screen, record gameplay at up to 60fps, and record webcam/audio solely to a dozen of file formats. Still, you can flexibly record screen with narration and system sound in high quality, and put the webcam overly onto any screen position. In addition, the embedded tools also empower you to set auto-stop for recording, self-define scheduled time, enable mouse cursor effects, adjust media parameters and do more edits regarding video trimming, playback speed, watermark and intro & outro.
If you want to do more advanced editing work, you can pay for its EaseUS Video Editor to do so.
Official guide: https://www.easeus.com/support/recexperts/record-screen.html
10. Movavi Screen Recorder 2022
☛ The Easiest Desktop Screen Recorder for PC of Windows & Mac
Platform: Windows 11/10/8/7/XP, macOS 10.11+
Pricing: $19.95 for 1-PC/year, $29.95 for 2-PC/lifetime
Download: https://www.movavi.com/screen-recorder/
Many users regard Movavi Screen Recorder as the simplest screencasting software due to its super-easy and beginner-friendly interface as well as the various features and settings.
Specifically, this versatile screen recording program for PC not only supports recording computer screen with webcam & audio in high-quality MP4/MOV etc., but also delivers many settings and mini tools for customized screen video creation, say file format/quality defining, scheduled recording, real-time annotation, file conversion, internal editor and one-click sharing to YouTube. What’s more, you can also record webcam video from either internal or external front camera, and save audio only from PC’s sound card and microphone.
Official user manual: https://img.movavi.com/online-help/srecorder/21/index.htm
11. Game Bar
☛ The Most Convenient Native Video Recorder of Windows 10 PC
Platform: Windows 10 v17763.0 or higher
Pricing: Free
Download: No need to download.
Game bar is commonly known as a free gameplay recorder for Windows 10. While it’s more than that because this in-system utility also features recording screen video of any single windows you’ve open.
Once your machine meets the system requirement of Game bar, you can press “Win icon + G” on keyboard to call its control overlay up for setting confirmation and manually recording, or hit “Win icon + Alt + G” to start the recording right away. If it doesn’t show up after shortcuts typing, please go to Settings -> Gaming dialog box to check whether it’s enabled. In the same place, you are given multiple capture settings on file saving folder, fps, quality, maximum video duration (up to 4 hours) or so.
If you just need to take Game or APP video at times and seeking for a third-party option is too time-consuming, why not gain benefit from this system welfare to initiate a one-click capture? If you have more demands on screen capture, e.g. recording whole display and grabbing several apps at the same time, then some other standalone app is more suitable.
12. QuickTime
☛ Mac’s In-system Screen Recorder with Audio
Platform: macOS
Pricing: Free
Download: No need to download
QuickTime Player for Mac or Screenshot toolbar (available in macOS Mojave or later) is the system-bundled tool for recording screen video on Mac without downloading any external application.
By accessing to the player’s “New Screen Recording” control or pressing “Shift + Command + 5”, you are able to record the whole screen or a selected portion of display with narration and mouse click at will. After stopping the video recording, you can trim it to remove unwanted parts, save it to any location, share it or do other actions.
The only drawback of this approach is that it doesn’t support grabbing internal sound, which means you can only get a narrated video. If there’s no mic audio, the final video is just a muted one. If the internal sound is a must-have, then you are left to seek help from audio driver such as Soundflower, Blackhole and Loopback.
Official Tutorial: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208721
13. Nvidia Share
☛ Free Screen Recorder for PC with Decent Nvidia Graphics Card
Platform: Windows 7, 8, 10, or 11
Pricing: Free
Download: https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/geforce-experience/shadowplay/
Nvidia Share, formerly known as Shadowplay, is not an independent screen recorder but a part of free GeForce Experience software by Nvidia Corp. As far as there’s a Nvidia GTX 600 series card or higher on your PC, you can enjoy this hardware accelerated video recorder at no cost. Is it necessary to screen record with hardware acceleration? It should be to boost the video encoding while having the minimal impact on system performance. That’s why many dedicated screencasting applications apply such codecs, e.g. H.264/HEVC Intel QSV and NEVNC, in their user settings.
Back to the point, Share can record up to 4K/2160p resolution at 130 Mbit/s. Besides resolution and bit rate, user are allowed to adjust frame rate and capture quality level. With the proper parameter value, you can start Instant Replay (20-min at most a time) and unlimited Manual recording as you like. When the recording is over, you can upload it to social platforms straightforwardly.
Forgive if your desktop or laptop configuration doesn’t include such solid GPU hardware. But considering the huge consumer base, it should be a necessity to have this kind of tool be a member of this best list.
Guide from howtogeek: How to Record Your PC Gameplay with NVIDIA ShadowPlay
14. Radeon ReLive
☛ Another Free Screen Video Recorder for Solid AMD Graphics Card
Platform: Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, Windows 11
Pricing: Free
Download: https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/geforce-experience/shadowplay/
Radeon ReLive is also a free tool you can gain benefit from for game capture, streaming and share once your PC is equipped with a qualified system and AMD GPU product like Radeon RX Vega/500/400 Series, R9/R7/R5, HD 8500-8900 Series and so on. Like Nvidia Share, Radeon ReLive is capable of recording gameplay efficiently while having the minimal impact on PC performance or say the in-game fps because the whole recording and encoding process will take place on GPU intensively.
When you have installed the latest version AMD RADEON SOFTWARE and driver, you can right click on desktop to launch it and access to ReLive to enable it. When ReLive option is toggled to “On”, more settings are given, for example the functionality of recording desktop, recording microphone, recording profile, resolution, FPS, encoding type, max video bitrate, audio bitrate/channel etc.
Guide from howtogeek: How to Record Gameplay Using Radeon™ Software
15. ShareX
☛ Screen capture, file sharing and productivity tool
Platform: Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows 10, Windows 11
Pricing: Free
Download: https://getsharex.com/downloads/
This is a versatile screen capture tool for Windows, with which you can not only make perfect screen video and image, but also do much more things with the extras offered alongside.
As to the capability of screen video recording, ShareX offers two basic options – “Screen Recording (FFmpeg)” and “Screen Recording (GIF)” – on it main UI. By leveraging they two, you can capture on any real-time actions, video streams and sound into a desired quality standard and file format without restriction.
The helpful extras of this utility include the wide support (50+) of file uploading/sharing sites & local destination, video converter/trumbnailer, image editor/splitter/combiner, URL shortener, directory indexer, etc. If you encounter a “(403) Forbidden” download error on Github, please go to Microsoft Store or its official site to complete the download and installation work.
VERDICT
Since various business, education, and daily communication scenarios requires a screen recorder, and both free and paid screen recorders can become impressive tools as long as their developers put user demanding in the first place and keep a good balance between productivity and easy-of-use, this list has gathered them together to narrow down your choice regardless of your system, budget or computing skill. Hope you can get a quality screen video recorder for PC from this roundup after finishing the reading. Also, don’t be stingy about your time on trying them because only when you’ve tried multiple can you pick the perfect one or two at your hand.
